***Warning: This story contains information that might be sensitive to some readers. ***
A former Revelstoke resident, who met with friends from Golden for a night out, has been sentenced to 12 months probation for sexually assaulting an acquaintance.
Christian Westcot Haggstrom, 21, was found guilty in a Revelstoke courtroom back in November, of sexually assaulting Jade Nemecek.
The incident occurred on June 2, 2019, in Revelstoke, after the two had been out drinking with friends.
Nemecek, her boyfriend at the time, another friend and Haggstrom were in the truck at the end of the evening when Nemecek fell asleep with her arm draped over the back seat.
She woke to Haggstrom groping her breasts and rubbing her hand on his penis, from where he sat in the back seat.
She immediately yanked her arm into the front seat to get her hand away from the accused and shook her shoulder to get his arm off of her.
Both Nemecek’s boyfriend of the time and their other friend testified as witnesses at the trial.
Neither witnessed the incident and the order of events afterwards is unclear, however, Judge Dennis Morgan determined that at some point they dropped Haggstrom off and stopped at a gas station so that Nemecek could wash her hands.
Everyone also testified that Haggstrom was extremely drunk and that he vomited on himself and in the back seat of the truck.
READ MORE: Revelstoke man convicted of sexually assaulting drunk woman
After dropping Haggstrom off, Nemecek told her boyfriend, who then told the driver, what had happened. Both testified that Nemecek cried for most of the trip back to Golden.
The next day Nemecek confronted Haggstrom via Snapchat.
In the conversation, he apologized and said that he didn’t remember what happened and that he couldn’t believe he got that drunk.
“The guilt is real as f**k,” he said.
In his decision, Morgan called the incident brazen and bizarre.
“Self-induced intoxication in itself, even if the intoxicated is at a very high level, is not a defence to the charge of sexual assault,” Morgan said.
Haggstrom was sentenced on Feb. 5.
The conditions of Haggstrom’s sentence include being registered as a sex offender for 10 years, he must not contact or be within 100 metres of Nemecek and he must not own a weapon.
Haggstrom no longer lives in B.C.
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*In this case there is no publication ban protecting the survivor’s identity and her name was published in full with her permission.
Need help?
Contact Revelstoke Victim’s Services at: 250-837-9260
Contact the Community based Victim’s Services in Salmon Arm: 250-832-4453
Revelstoke Women’s Shelter Society 24/7 Crisis Line: 250-837-1111
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